Best Marijuana Moments of 2015

December 31st 2015

By:

Kyle Jaeger

For legalization advocates, 2015 has been a historic year. Marijuana was pushed further into the mainstream than ever before, and new policies passed at the state level seem to confirm that the public and lawmakers are ready to have a rational conversation about the future of pot in America.

Here's a throwback to the 10 best marijuana moments of 2015.

1. That time President Barack Obama signaled his support for legalization in an interview on Sanjay Gupta's documentary "Weed 3"

"You know, I think I’d have to take a look at the details, but I’m on record as saying that not only do I think carefully prescribed medical use of marijuana may in fact be appropriate and we should follow the science as opposed to ideology on this issue," Obama told CNN.

2. When Colorado made $66 million in marijuana tax revenue and used it to fund schools and public health services.

The state set the money aside for school construction, drop-out prevention programs, youth mentoring services, substance abuse treatment, and more after making more than lawmakers highest estimates this year.

3. That Gallup poll that showed a record majority of American adults (58 percent) supported marijuana legalization.

"Americans' support for legalizing marijuana is the highest Gallup has measured to date, at 58 percent," Gallup wrote. "Given the patterns of support by age, that percentage should continue to grow in the future."

9. That moment when Canada elected a pro-pot prime minister, who has already moved the country closer to federal legalization.

"Canada's current system of marijuana prohibition does not work," Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal election platform said. "We will remove marijuana consumption and incidental possession from the Criminal Code and create new, stronger laws to punish more severely those who provide it to minors, those who operate a motor vehicle while under its influence and those who sell it outside of the new regulatory framework."

10. And who can forget Stoner Sloth?

In December, an Australian government agency launched an anti-marijuana ad campaign that hilariously backfired. The agency hoped to send the message "you're worse on weed," but instead, the #StonerSloth videos went viral and only went to show that the public won't be fooled by scientifically baseless claims about the effects of marijuana any longer.

All in all, 2015 was a good year for weed. And as we look forward to the new year, there's a lot to be excited about. At least five states are posed to vote on initiatives to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in 2016, with more to come as other additional statewide petitions advance.